Israeli Scouts in Seattle and Arizona

Just after midnight, June 3, after driving for 16 hours, the ten members and two advisors of the 2009 Tzofim (Israeli Scouts) Friendship Caravan arrived in Seattle, in the middle of their second week of travel and performances in the US. Five groups of ten members each are traveling through the US. Seattle, and the Phoenix and Tucson areas have the Tamar Caravan visit.

On Wednesday, June 3, after sleeping a short time, the ten teens divided into 5 groups and visited 24 classes in 6 schools in 4 cities throughout the area, talking to at least 750 high school students about Israel and their lives there. In several schools, they also taught Israeli dances

After dinner, they performed for over an hour to an enthusiastic audience in the sanctuary of Herzl Ner Tamid synagogue.

Their songs included "Lu Yehi" ("Let It Be"), "Yom Sababa," "Yerushalayim Haacheret," a Hora Medley, and "You've Got a Friend in Me."

They also sang a song dedicated to Gilad Shalit, the soldier held by Hamas since 2007, and another for the young soldiers who fought in the Gaza action this past winter. Of course they also sang "Hatikvah."

After Seattle, this Tzofim group traveled to Vancouver, Canada, and also to Tacoma, Washington. This is the first time that the Scouts have come to Seattle, and hopefully it will not be the last. They were sponsored by the northwest chapter of Stand With Us, an Israel Advocacy group. The chair of the group grew up in Israel where Tzofim played a huge part in her childhood.